Town Council member Steve Wagner: enjoying retired life

Being a member of the town council has become somewhat of a second career for Steve Wagner. He said he is enjoying his retirement and keeps busy outside of the council by staying active.

It's been almost two years since Wagner was elected to the council. Before this, he was a nuclear physicist and engineer for 38 years. His career helped him learn about energy efficiency, which led him to become part of an energy committee that informs residents about their energy options to help them save money.

"We've done Energize Connecticut, which provided over 300 residents with home energy solution audits of their houses," he said. "People stop me and say, 'Boy, we had one of those audits done; I was really happy with the results.'" He added that he is passionate about the environment.

"Nuclear energy is one of the cleanest forms of energy that we have," said the former Naval officer. "The [nuclear] power plants have zero emissions, themselves."

Wagner said he is excited about the upcoming projects planned by the energy committee, one being the replacement LED street light project.

Wagner and his wife moved to South Windsor from Bloomfield in 1999. He was active in the Bloomfield community, as well, serving as president of the Jaycees and as a CIVITAN, and he was a founding member of the Bloomfield Ambulance Committee. After his son and daughter became adults, Wagner said they moved to South Windsor because they wanted more space, and they fell in love with the town.

One of the reasons they needed more space, said Wagner, is so he could develop his woodworking skills. "I built furniture and two beds for the children," he said. "One of my favorite projects was a desk that I refinished for my daughter. It was badly damaged, but it's a pretty nice piece of furniture now." Wagner admitted that he hasn't done too much woodworking lately, because the council takes up a sizable portion of his time.

For recreation, Wagner likes to take off for a snowy mountain in the winter for skiing or to ride one of the local trails on his bike.

"That's the great thing about living in Connecticut, the seasons and the different activities that go with it," he said. "You can ride your bike almost year-round, with the skiing in nearby states." He takes an annual week-long vacation to Utah where he skis with his peers, he said.

Locally, Wagner is a member of a biking group that meets every Friday and travels about 40 miles each ride. He is also a member of the Walk and Wheel Ways and teaches a bike safety class to elementary school students.

"Every fourth-grader in South Windsor learns how to ride a bike, use the breaks and gears, and how to ride safely on the streets," Wagner said. "It's an ideal age because they're old enough to quickly develop the skills and are still very eager learners." He added that he has gotten positive feedback on the program.

"When I went out campaigning, every once in a while a little kid would come up to me and say, 'That's the bike guy,'" he said with a laugh. "That's great."